The ‘House of the Dragon’ Dog Has a Better Arc Than Some Characters
House of the Dragon is chock full of complicated characters, noble houses, brutal battles, and dragons darkening the sky. In a world as fantastical as Westeros, who would’ve thought the bridge between Team Green and Team Black’s hearts would lie in a dog?
The dog in question once belonged to the ratcatcher given the apt alias of Cheese (Mark Stobbart). Cheese, of course, met his demise after partaking in the murder of Jaehaerys (Michael Carter), heir to the Iron Throne. The dog, also known as Bobby, loyally followed his master during his bumbling assassination mission and suffered a kick from Cheese’s Hightower-hating accomplice, Blood (Sam C. Wilson), despite being the bestest boy. The brief moment of animal cruelty ignited the fandom, which expressed its anger on the internet. Unfortunately, the heartbreak didn’t end there.
Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) ordered every ratcatcher in the city to be killed, and our four-legged protagonist’s next appearance included waiting under his dead master’s corpse for what looked to have been days. In HotD’s most recent outing, season 2, episode 6, “Smallfolk,” we get another glimpse of Bobby, this time getting pets. Bobby’s return has sparked memes, proving he has a big following of fans rooting for him. Why? Probably because his story—although small—contains more substance (and screen time) than some characters were afforded.
Supporting characters lack development and screen time
It might sound cruel, but season 2 has been a mixed bag, receiving a much harsher critical reception than the series’ first outing. Messy writing and editing give the impression that HotD is struggling to juggle all of its characters. Audiences have grown tired of Daemon (Matt Smith) wandering around Harrenhal on his “bad trip,” and Rhaenyra’s (Emma D’Arcy) role has been stagnant since resigning to Dragonstone.
Meanwhile, Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell) and Baela’s (Bethany Antonia) development as supporting characters is sacrificed for … more talking, planning, and in the case of Daemon, ambling around. What about Cregan Stark (Tom Taylor)? His highly anticipated debut was given about three minutes of attention in season 2, episode 1. And, despite the importance of his relationship with Jacaerys (Harry Collett), it was developed off-screen, like many of HotD’s big reveals.
Don’t know how Aegon and Helaena (Phia Saban) actually ended up together? That’s because we never see a wedding or get insight into the arrangement. Last we know, Helaena was supposed to marry one of Rhaenyra’s kids, which obviously didn’t pan out, given the whole exiled queen thing. Unfortunately, this is just one example of how Helaena needs more development. Neglecting minor characters can work, but not when they connect to what is widely considered House of the Dragon’s most horrific event, Blood and Cheese.
Of course, it’s absolutely terrible for a child to be murdered (the scene itself was done as tastefully as it could be given the brutal subject matter), yet it lacked impact nonetheless. We don’t know Helaena, and therefore, we don’t fully get to experience her devastation. Emotional investment becomes tricky when the character lacks screen time and personality. There’s a reason people are still talking about the Red Wedding, just like there’s a reason Blood and Cheese was criticized—and it all boils down to character development.
HotD likes morally grey, but the dog is just good
Unlike the source material where Daemon specifies to kill someone else if Blood and Cheese can’t find the target, Dameon never tells them to kill an innocent child in the HBO series; he wants Aemond (Ewan Mitchell). Narratively, it makes sense. Aemond was responsible for killing Lucerys (Elliot Grihault), making his death direct revenge. However, the change also whitewashed Daemon in an attempt to make him morally grey as opposed to fully villainous.
Morally grey works wonders across TV, movies, and literature. The problem is the majority of House of the Dragon’s main players fall into this category already, from Criston Cole and Aegon to Alicent, Rhaenyra, and many more. Perhaps that’s what makes the ratcatcher’s orphaned dog so appealing: He is purely good and thus easy to root for. Bobby mourning his master was enough to break hearts everywhere, especially after watching him be unfairly punished by Blood.
When there is chaos, audiences look for a hero. The Blacks and Greens don’t leave many good options right now, so while the humans battle it out, animals like Bobby and Seasmoke work to add a little goodness to the darkness. It also helps that their limited screen time is memorable, which is more than can be said for some of House of the Dragon’s supporting characters.
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